Following on from my post about Metallica’s Orion, here’s another instrumental that’s a showcase for a much-missed legend. Dee is a brief classical guitar piece that was written and performed by guitarist Randy Rhoads for Ozzy Osbourne’s 1980 album Blizzard Of Ozz. I can’t say that, in isolation, I find Dee particularly involving or moving. But the piece (written for the guitarist’s Mum, aww) is sensitive and pretty. Not words commonly associated with Ozzy Osbourne. And in the context of the full album it strengthens the overall musicality, variety and guitar hero-ness of a hugely enjoyable record. Countless aspiring guitarists (myself included) have tried to learn Dee and I’m sure they’ll continue to do so. That’s quite an impact for a 50 second interlude. His Mum must have been delighted beyond words.
Tag Archives: English
Warning – Footprints (Song Review)
“Here I am wide open”
Warning: listening to Footprints may induce melancholia. Emotive performances always go well with the ponderous spaces and tempos of doom metal but UK’s Warning take it to an unusually sad and vulnerable level on this sublime track from 2006’s Watching From A Distance. In fact, Footprints is more in the Anathema/Marillion zone of hearfelt, emotional catharsis. I’m too much of a satanic viking to get on board with the wallowing, introspective lyrics but the staggering combination of lurching low end, beautiful ringing chords and Patrick Walker’s distinctive, wistful vocals doesn’t half hit me right in the feels.
Robert Plant – Come Into My Life (Song Review)
“Hopes drift in higher places”
On Come Into My Life, well-chosen guest musicians sprinkle tasteful, but magical, fairy dust over a great song and turn it into a sublime one. Taken from Robert Plant’s excellent 1993 album Fate Of Nations, this is a passionate celtic rock song with gentle, shimmering verses and a fully Ledded big chord chorus. But because Boaby is the kind of guy (I imagine) that can just pick up the phone and get anyone he wants, Clannad’s Máire Brennan adds her beautiful ethereal voice and folk-rock giant Richard Thompson adds his distinctive, delicate guitar bends making Come Into My Life even more elemental and sumptuous than it already was. Ideal dreamy listening for a hot summer’s day.
Venom – Seven Gates Of Hell: Live 1985 (Song Review)
“And man and beast are one”
Chaotic, train wreck live shows are a big part of Venom’s notoriety and their live album Eine Kleine Nachtmusik lives up to that legend. That said, the Geordie trio do a pretty good job of holding it together on this live version of Seven Gates Of Hell. It’s one of my favourite Venom tracks and one of their more controlled, brooding efforts. And while this live outing adds a wallop of cavernous excitement and brute force, the song’s charm remains. The moody mid-section is especially captivating as Cronos’ bass bulldozes over Mantas’ enigmatic chords. Sadly, by the time Eine Kleine Nachtmusik hit the shelves in 1986, the band’s classic lineup was no more. But the Venom legions could console themselves by listening to their beloved black metallers knocking seven shades of shite out of Seven Gates Of Hell.
Judas Priest – The Sentinel (Song Review)
“The figure stands expressionless”
Over the years, Judas Priest have had a growing penchant for lyrics that basically just describe some sort of apocalyptic cartoon character. A lot of their album covers depict similar creations too – check out the Metalli-Tarkus or whatever it is on the cover of their 1984 album Defenders Of The Faith. And that same album also has one of the best songs of this particular type: The Sentinel. Just that title alone is metal as fuck. And so is the song. The guitar intro is imposing and dramatic, the pacey riffing builds to a typically phenomenal display of guitar jousting from the Tipton/Downing dream team and Boaby Halford totally delivers the goods: singing phrases like “sworn to avenge” with utter conviction. Recorded following the band’s big US breakthrough, The Sentinel brims with confidence while also retaining the cutting edge of their earlier material, closing a faultless side of vinyl on an epic sci-fi high.
Whitesnake – You ‘N’ Me (Song Review)
“If you don’t stop what you’re doing to me, I’m gonna to do it to you”
Poor Cov the Guv. He’s normally the cock of the walk but on 1979’s You ‘N’ Me the ‘snake frontman is left holding his own, wondering where his lover has been all night… and who she’s been with. This short and sweet rock ‘n’ roller is slathered with rootsy slide guitar and injects some welcome energy into the Lovehunter album. It reminds me of Deep Purple’s Lady Double Dealer: lively and direct with cheating woman lyrics and a feelgood bridge that lifts the whole song. There’s no twist or suggestion that the narrator is just a big jealous pants (a nuance that would have worked well on that catchy bridge). No, this lady is just a double dealer. But given that Cov compares her to “page three girls in the Playboy books” I can’t blame her for looking elsewhere.
Napalm Death – Smash A Single Digit (Song Review)
“Crunch a number, grinds your gears”
A song about the dehumanisation and exploitation of workers should probably sound a bit angry so the topic is in safe hands with Brummie grind gods Napalm Death. In recent years they’ve been making some of their best ever music and Smash A Single Digit from 2015’s Apex Predator – Easy Meat is a masterclass in furious extremity. It’s dissonant and explosive with a superbly thrashy climax and an intense, vital performance from vocalist Barney Greenway. Napalm Death have been making excoriating noise for decades now and show no signs of taking a break.
Marillion – Holidays In Eden (Song Review)
“Nothing here can hurt you”
Holidays In Eden is a rare instance where an album’s title track is also its weakest. But in this case, it’s not that the namesake track is terrible. It’s just that, where the rest of the album veers between lovely pop and moody storytelling, Holidays In Eden is just polite, straightforward rock that doesn’t play to the band’s strengths. The verses have a nice carefree feel and the bridge adds a bit of edge but, in particular, the chorus always struck me as a bit weak. And, if the interviews on the recent reissue box set are anything to go by, Marillion never seemed to be particularly enamoured with it either. A song they say themselves should have been “wilder” and “better than it was”. Can’t argue with that.
Tyrant – Hold Back The Lightning (Song Review)
“Ride out in midnight”
Tyrant were like lightning: they only struck once. Like so many other New Wave Of British Heavy Metal hopefuls, the Gloucestershire band only released a solitary 7″ single in 1983 before riding off into obscurity. It’s a shame the band never did more because the A-Side track Hold Back The Lightning is totally righteous: galloping power metal with anthemic, folky vocals that are a larynx-shredding mix of High ‘N’ Dry Joe Elliott and Trouble’s Eric Wagner. This was the first song I listened to in 2023 because I wanted to start my year off in suitably heroic and chest-beating fashion. Mission accomplished.
Brian May – Resurrection (Song Review)
“Got a whole new direction”
Brian may have been through a tough time with the breakup of his marriage and the deaths of both his father and Freddie Mercury but in 1993 he was back. And sounding rejuvenated on the soaring Resurrection, raising an erection with awesome guitar and the pounding drums of Cozy F. Powell – who was also back after being crushed by a horse in the early 90s! They both sound like they’re having the best time, May playing heavy and flashy but with a loose exuberance, driven on by an absolute arse-kicking from Powell that sends Resurrection into Sabbath Tyr territory. Fuck yes. Two rock legends, back with a bang.
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